The invention relates to an adjustable support device for the upholstery of a piece of furniture that is used for sitting and/or laying upon. More particularly, the invention relates to a motor adjustable support device for adjusting the configuration of the mattress of a bed.
Such support devices are generally known in the form of motor adjustable slats for beds and such.
A related motor adjustable support device of this type is known from DE 38 42 078 C2 in the form of a slat system that is provided with a base body with a frame, to which several adjustable support components are connected in relation to one another. The known support device has a drive unit with a housing that is connected to the base body and can be removed. The housing has two recesses offset from one another, into which in the assembly position of the drive unit one shaft each, each of which is rotatably mounted to the base body of the support device, engages with an adjustable support component; and the adjustable support can be rotated by means of the drive unit. In the known support device, the drive unit is arranged below the slat frame.
One disadvantage of the known support device is that it has a relatively large height.
Similar support devices are also known from EP 0 372 032 B1, and EP 0 583 660 B1. These support devices also have a relatively large height.
The invention is based on the task of providing a motor adjustable support device for a piece of reclining furniture that does not have the disadvantage of known support devices; namely, the height of the adjustable support device is reduced.
This object is achieved by the motor adjustable support device for a piece of reclining furniture according to the invention including: a base; at least two support components provided on the base and defining a support side of the support device, the at least two support components being adjustable relative to each other; at least one detachable drive unit detachably connected to the base; a drive housing provided for the at least one drive unit; at least one recess provided in the drive housing; a rotatable shaft provided for adjusting the at least two support components relative to each other; at least one of the rotatable shaft and a drive of the at least one drive unit extending through the at least one recess for engaging with the other one of the at least one rotatable shaft and the drive of the at least one drive unit; the at least one detachable drive unit being provided in the drive housing for causing the drive to engage the rotatable shaft by placing the at least one detachable drive unit onto the rotatable shaft from the support side, the at least one drive unit thereby adjusting the at least two support components relative to each other when the at least one drive unit is driven; and the at least one drive unit being disposed substantially between the at least two support components and the rotatable shaft.
The invention departs from the concept of arranging the drive unit below the base body of the support device, as is the case in known support devices. The invention is rather further based on the idea of arranging the drive unit in such a way that it is arranged in a vertical direction in its assembly position between the shaft and the support components. For this purpose the invention includes that the drive unit is placed onto the shaft from the support side.
In this way, the drive unit is received between the shaft and the support components so that it does not, or only insignificantly protrudes over the base body of the support device. The height of the inventive support device is therefore substantially reduced, and is essentially determined by the height of the base body of the support device.
Owing to the low height of the support device, a space formed below the support device at the assembly position of the support device, such as on a bed, can be utilized, such as for the storage of objects, as this space is not filled, or is only insignificantly filled by the drive unit.
Furthermore, the inventive support device is visually attractive, as it essentially gives the appearance of a conventional, non-motor adjustable support device owing to its low height.
A further advantage of the inventive support device is that due to its low height, it uses less space during transport and during storage than known support devices. This represents a cost savings.
The inventive support device can be produced simply and at low cost, and can be easily attached to the base body of the support device.
A further embodiment of the inventive teaching includes the feature that the shaft is supported on the base body of the support device. This results in a stable and robust construction.
Another embodiment of the inventive teaching intends that a pivot lever is nonrotatably connected to the shaft, which is rotatably mounted to the drive unit by means of a drive motor for rotating the pivot lever. In this way, the adjusting device of the inventive support device is of particular simple construction, and can therefore be produced at low cost. Furthermore, in this embodiment, extremely high forces can be exerted by the adjusting device, which is particularly of advantage when the support device is to be adjusted under a load, such as under the weight of the person resting on it.
The drive unit of the inventive support device can be constructed in any suitable way. An advantageous embodiment includes that the drive unit has a linearly movable drive element which engages with a rotation lever for rotating the same. In this way, a simple and low cost, as well as robust construction of the drive unit is achieved.
In the embodiment with the rotation lever, the rotation lever is may be an angled or bent lever, as a further embodiment teaches. Given a corresponding linkage to the lever, such as with a linearly movable drive element, particularly high forces can be exerted in this embodiment.
In the embodiment with the linearly movable drive element, it can be constructed in any suitable way. A further embodiment includes the feature that the linear movable drive element is a spindle nut which is nonrotatably and in axial direction displaceably held on a rotatable non-displaceable spindle. Such spindle drives are available as simple and low cost, as well as robust standard components.
In a kinematic reverse of the previously mentioned embodiment, the linearly movable drive element, however, can also be a fixed spindle movable in its axial direction, on which a locally fixed, rotatable spindle nut is arranged.
It is generally sufficient that the support device has a single shaft which engages with the support component to be adjusted. Purposefully, however, two rotatable shafts may be included, whereby a recess in the housing of the drive unit is assigned to each shaft. By using two shafts, of which each engages with at least one support component to be adjusted, multiple adjustment possibilities can be achieved. For instance in the case of a slat system that has an upper body support component, a head support component, a leg support component, and a lower leg support component, which can be adjusted in relation to a center support component.
A further advantageous embodiment of the inventive teaching includes a locking means for the locking of the drive unit in an assembly position on the support device. This prevents the drive units from separating from the shaft under load.
Purposefully, the base body of the inventive support device has a frame, such as a further embodiment includes.
A further embodiment of the inventive teaching includes that the support device is constructed as a slat system.
An extraordinarily advantageous improvement of the inventive teaching includes the feature that the drive unit is arranged on a first part of the furniture, that the drive unit has a winding device for a band, rope, strand-like, or chain-like pulling element, that the strand-like pulling element is fed across at least one first pulley-like turn roller, the at least one first pulley-like turn roller being connected to a part which is fixed during adjustment of at least one of the at least two support components, the strand-like pulley element is fed across at least one second pulley like turn roller which is connected to one of the two support components, and that the strand-like pulley element cooperates with said first and second pulley-like turn rollers to define a pulley block. In this embodiment, the inventive furniture drive of the inventive support device works like a pulley-block. Because of this, high forces can be exerted by the drive unit of the furniture drive even with the use of smaller, and therefore less expensive adjustment motors, such as electric motors. By using smaller, and therefore less expensive drive motors, the inventive furniture drive is simple as a whole, and thereby low in cost. Its construction is also compact.
It generally suffices if the pull element is fed across the turn rollers like a 2-rope pulley. An extraordinarily advantageous embodiment of the inventive teaching includes, however, that first and second pulley-like turn rollers define an at least 4-pulley system. This embodiment achieves a higher reduction than with merely a 2-pulley system so that especially high forces can be exerted depending on the amount of ropes or pulleys of the pulley of the pulley system. The drive motor of the drive unit can therefore be constructed even smaller and lower in cost, and is also more compact.
Further improvements of the inventive teaching include that the turn rollers assigned to a drive unit, and that are arranged on the housing or on another locally fixed part during the adjustment of the support component, have coaxial pivot axes, or the turn rollers are arranged on a mutual pivot axis, and/or that the turn rollers are assigned to the support component, and that the turn rollers are arranged on it or on an intermediate part and have coaxial pivot axes, or are arranged on a mutual pivot axis. In this embodiment, the turn rollers which are assigned to a part of the furniture each form a compact, space saving roller block.
Other improvements according the invention include that the turn rollers are assigned to a drive unit, and are arranged on the housing or on another locally fixed part during the adjustment of the support component and have pivot axes which are parallel to each other, and/or that the turn rollers are assigned to the support component, and are arranged on the support component or on an intermediate part and have pivot axes which are parallel to each other. These embodiments result in a particularly compact construction in an axial direction of the turn rollers.
According to the respective requirements, an end of the pull means opposite to the winding device can be attached on the support component to be adjusted, or on an intermediate part which engages with the support component for the adjustment of the same, or on the housing, or on the first part.
Any desirable adjustment movements of parts of a furniture can generally be performed with the inventive furniture drive. Purposefully, the drive unit, or the drive units, are constructed as a rotation drive, or as rotation drives, respectively, for the rotation of the support component, or for the rotation of the support components, respectively, in relation to the first part, as is included in an embodiment according to the invention. This embodiment is particularly simple, and therefore low cost in its construction, as a rotation drive according to the pulley principle can be realized low construction expenses.
A further improvement according to the inventive teaching includes that an intermediate part is a rotation lever which carries at least one turn roller. This embodiment is simple in its construction, and can therefore be produced at low cost. The rotation lever can engage with the support component for the adjustment of the same in any suitable way.
An extraordinarily advantageous improvement of the previously mentioned embodiment includes that the rotation lever is rotatably mounted to a pivot supported shaft, and with which the support component engages for the rotation of the same. This embodiment is simple in its construction, and is particularly robust so that especially high forces can be exerted with the furniture drive according to this embodiment.
A further improvement of the previously described embodiment includes that the rotation lever is positively connected to the shaft. This embodiment is particularly robust and suitable for the transmission of particularly high forces.
A further improvement of the embodiment having the rotation lever and the shaft includes that the shaft has a non-round cross section, and the shaft positively engages with a recess of the rotation lever, which recess is essentially formed complementary and corresponding to a cross section of the shaft. This embodiment is particularly simple in its construction.
According to another improvement, the recess of the rotation lever is constructed open in a radial direction of the shaft, whereby a locking means is provided for locking the shaft in the recess. This eases the insertion of the shaft into the recess.
A further improvement of the embodiment with the rotation lever includes that it is constructed as a two-armed lever, whereby each lever arm carries at least one turn roller. With this embodiment, a particularly compact construction can also be achieved.
The winding device can be constructed in any desired way. A particular improvement includes the winding device having a rotatable winding element attached to the end of the pull means opposite of the winding device, and that is rotatably mounted to a motor, such as an electric motor. Owing to the inventive use of the pulley principle, the motor, which forms the rotation drive for the winding element, can be small, and thereby at low cost.
An inventive piece of furniture used for sitting and/or laying upon equipped with an inventive support device is likewise achieved in accordance with the invention.
The invention is described in greater detail using the attached drawings, which illustrate an embodiment of an inventive support device in the form of a slat system.
Relative terms such as up, down, left, and right are for convenience only and are not intended to be limiting.